Chat Plus

Real estate editor Maryann Haggerty and columnist Elizabeth Razzi respond to a question adapted from a recent online chat.

Q: Fairfax: In the Fairfax County area, have you generally heard of how much buyers are tending to offer above/below asking price? Are there any trends in offers, such as closing costs, decorator allowance or reduced price?

A: Maryann Haggerty: Last month, houses in Fairfax County sold for about 91 percent of the listing price on average, according to Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, the local multiple-listing service.

Based on standard negotiation tactics, that tells me that buyers are probably offering 15 percent or so below the asking price, sellers are counter-offering, and they're more or less splitting the difference.

Elizabeth Razzi: In any kind of market, a smart buyer will do some research and arrive at her own estimate of a reasonable price. A buyer's agent can help by showing you what competing sellers are asking for their homes and by looking up recent sales prices. That's a much sounder approach than knocking an arbitrary percentage off of all asking prices.

Most serious sellers now offer to pay some closing costs. I wouldn't expect to see many offering a "decorator allowance." That's the hallmark of a seller who is too lazy to spend the money on upgrades before putting the home on the market. If you find such a seller, negotiate hard on price because your purchase offer probably won't face much competition.

The next Real Estate Live chat will be at 1 p.m. Friday.